Review: Sculpture by the Sea 2019

Sculpture By The Sea has arrived in Perth, turning Cottesloe Beach and Marine Parade foreshore into an outdoor museum, and showcasing 71 sculptures from 26 artists coming from all over the world. This is the fifteenth annual exhibition and the iconic beach, with its white sand and stunning turquoise water, provides an exquisite backdrop for this summer event. With a crowd of 240,000 people expected to flock to Cottesloe over the next couple of weeks, it’s the perfect opportunity to spend a Saturday morning having a gander at some incredible works of art. Although, I would recommend heading down early to guarantee yourself a parking spot.

The sculptures start on the grassy area before scattering themselves along the beach, here’s a little snapshot of some of the art featured:

06 Under One Sky

By Stephen Marr (NSW)

These visually stunning ‘sky people’ greet in an embrace and remind ourselves we all belong in this society and share the same sky.

08 Yellow (2015) and Green (2012)

By Jiao Xingtao (China)

Scrunched up pesky gum wrappers, everyday litter brought to life.

18 Seven Sisters Country

By Vijayayammbigai Muir (WA)

Based on her grandmother’s painting, this Aboriginal piece brings a touch of traditional culture for others to admire and enjoy in its vibrancy and detailing.

9 Rolling the Earth

By Tae-Geun Yang (South Korea)

These three bronze bears reminded me of an old-fashioned circus act, animals put to work for human entertainment. Open to interpretation, part of the artist’s statement reads “How can we create an environment in which bears can live and play in peace?”.

24 Family Tree

By Tania Ferrier & Abe Dunovits (WA)

Representing multiculturalism and identity in Australia, this artwork consists of several family portraits painted on silver trays, suspended from a tree. Looking like stained glass, the paint lights up when it hits the sun revealing its person in the frame.

25 Vintage Bush Truck

By Janine Mcaullay Bott (WA)

Any 90’s kids remember the British television series Brum? The intelligent, beady-eyed car is this truck’s lookalike, Aussie of course.

27 Oceania Sphere

By Elizabeth Kelly (NSW)

A spiny sea urchin or a cellular life form? Contrasting with the ocean, the blue hues really pop.

30 The Vague but Slightly Illuminated Eye of Perception

By Stephen Harrison (NSW)

A woeful, rundown lighthouse. Will she still guide sailors to safety, away from the clutches of the ragged reef below?

38 Seachange

By Elin & Keino (Finland)

Climate change is real. It’s possible that all our houses will be buried in sand, exposing the rooftops and showing how humans are vulnerable to the forces of nature.

39 Draw Houses Make Houses

By Hu Quanchun (China)

Children drawings depicting a shanty village.

40 Flame

By Sally Stoneman (WA)

A flame within a flame. The internal smoulder flickering inside our hearts. The ravaging heat burning through our bushland.

45 Al-Mashoof (Marsh Boat)

By Ayad Alqaragholli (Iraq & WA)

Representing a marsh boat from his childhood, this sculpture evokes a personal story, “…the mashoof reed boats that have navigated the Mesopotamian Marshes of my southern Iraq homeland for years”.

46 Thoughts of Pinocchio

By Bongsoo Kim (South Korea)

A modern artsy take on the character Pinocchio?

People lie to themselves and others as they become overpowered with the idea of work and money, causing their nose to grow longer each time.

55 Untitled 018

By Miik Green (WA)

A forest of towering aluminium rods.

56 Women in Bronze

By Sonia Payes (VIC)

This artwork made it into my fav top ten list. The illusion that this head (or heads?) is floating atop the sand is magical. The gold lustre radiating from her bronze skin adds to the effect.

61 Structural Orb

By Jarrod Taylor (WA)

Made from tube and fitting scaffold this giant sphere rests on the edge of the foreshore steps. With one massive gust of wind it threatens to squish everyone in its path. The artist said, “Structural Orb endeavours to capture the momentum of civilisation’s advancement. The world is teetering on the edge of collapse”.

67 Pods

By Rima Zabaneh & Berenice Rarig (WA)

Placed among a group of trees and bringing ocean life onto land, these sea anemones are amazing. This was a major scholarship winner and when you get up close it isn’t hard to see why. Made from 70 thousand zip ties these sculptures are simply stunning. Their electric purple dyed ends add to their eccentric looks.

68 Kuma Room

By Osamu Ohnishi & Masako Ohnishi (Japan)

At first glance from the side this art piece looks like a small hut but if you look at from the front it is still, in fact, a hut––in the shape of a bear’s head. How inventive!

These are just a few of the 71 sculptures from this year’s exhibition. These fascinating artworks have come from 17 countries around the world, which gives you a multicultural art experience and provides insight into the minds of these clever, creative artists and sculptors.

If you don’t get a chance to head down to Sculpture By The Sea this year, then hopefully you enjoyed this little taste of what this fantastic, free public event has to offer. However, with long-term sponsors backing out, Sculpture needs us. Feel free to drop in a small donation to ensure we see another year of the event arrive in our community.

What are you waiting for? Grab your camera, some friends and get cracking.

Sculpture by the Sea is sticking around Cottesloe beach until March 18.